Shai Gilgeous-Alexander reflects on MVP trophy presentation
Any concerns with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander being too consumed by his MVP achievement were quickly squashed. All the glitz and glamor didn't affect him on the hardwood. Even with Silver and the rest of the NBA world in attendance, the 26-year-old showed why he's one of the best players.
The Oklahoma City Thunder enjoyed a 118-103 Game 2 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 38 points on 12-of-21 shooting, eight assists and three rebounds. He shot 1-of-2 from 3 and went 13-of-15 on free throws. He also had five steals.
Nobody on the Timberwolves can stop Gilgeous-Alexander. They threw everything and still couldn't slow him down. He made the Western Conference Finals look like a walk in the park. There was no fooling around in this one. The drive-heavy scorer attacked the basket with a sprinkle of mid-range jumpers.
All Minnesota could do was foul. Gilgeous-Alexander had a busy night at the free-throw line. Frustration boiled over for McDaniels to the point he shoved the MVP winner to the ground and received a flagrant foul. All you could do was smile as the Timberwolves resorted to anger.
"He's just got an unbelievable ability to not be in a groove and get himself there almost instantaneously. You never feel like the next play is gonna be a continuation of a lack of rhythm or a couple misses. He's always getting himself going for the next possession," Daigneault said about Gilgeous-Alexander. Just great mental toughness, great consistency. He's really learned the length of the game. He's just never out of it."
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After the win, Gilgeous-Alexander had a chance to catch his breath a bit. It's been a whirlwind two days. He went from being announced as the MVP winner to conducting an emotional speech to receiving his trophy to putting up a near 40-point performance to go up 2-0 against the Timberwolves.
With Thunder legends like Chris Paul and Kendrick Perkins in attendance, Gilgeous-Alexander completed a childhood dream as Silver handed him the MVP trophy with his teammates in the background cheering him on.
"I felt really good. I feel like my emotions are so high that I was a little bit tired out there. Especially the start. I was a little too juiced up. Special moment. I'm happy we won so I can really enjoy the last couple of days and soak it all up. That really helps," Gilgeous-Alexander said on receiving his MVP trophy. "Shoutout to the team. Played really well tonight. Head to Minnesota 2-0."
No offense to TV personality Perkins, but Paul's attendance meant a little more to Gilgeous-Alexander. After all, he was his mentor in their sole season together in 2019-20. The MVP winner talked about the role the future Hall-of-Famer has had in his life after hilariously realizing he was in attendance when he sat next to his family courtside.
"He's been great. Not only as a big brother mentor but just like a friend. He's always there to lean on. He's the first guy in my life where I was close with that achieved the things I wanted to achieve," Gilgeous-Alexander said about Paul. "I really lean on him for advice. Not only basketball advice, but business advice, taking care of your body advice. Handling a family when they don't live with you. There are so many things you deal with as an NBA player, especially his caliber, that go under the radar and his guidance with that has been great."
What Gilgeous-Alexander has done over the last three seasons has desensitized folks who've watched it every other night for nine months. But with the MVP trophy finally in his hands, it's nice to zoom out and just take in the history we're seeing unfold. He is one of the greatest scorers in NBA history at the top of his craft.
"It's pretty easy. All season long, we've built up the habit and muscle of focusing on the next game and worrying about what's in front of us. It's no different in this situation," Goilgeous-Alexander said about being close to a championship. "We're aware of where we are in the season. But we've been doing ourselves a disservice if we veer away from what got us here. That's what we prioritize."
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